Words

The least and the fewest

March 29, 2012

The least is used before uncountable nouns. It is the superlative of little. He does the least work in this office. The least can be used without a noun if the meaning is clear from the context. Jane does the most work in this office. Jack does the least. The expression ‘least of’ can be [...]

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Special uses of some adverbs

October 25, 2011

Short and shortly Short is used as an adverb in expressions like stop short (= stop suddenly) and cut short (= interrupt) Shortly means ‘soon’. You will hear from us shortly. Slow and slowly Slow is an adjective; slowly is an adverb. However, slow can be used as an adverb after verbs like go and [...]

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Using next and nearest

October 6, 2011

Nearest is used for place. It is used to refer to people or things which are most near in space. Excuse me. Where is the nearest hospital? (NOT Where is the next hospital?) The nearest railway station is two kilometers away. Next is used to talk about time or position in a series. It means [...]

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Using afraid

September 2, 2011

Afraid and fear Be afraid is the normal expression for talking about fear. He is afraid of the dark. Don’t be afraid. (NOT Don’t fear.) (NOT Don’t afraid.) Are you afraid of spiders? There is nothing to be afraid of. She is afraid that you might get angry. Difference between afraid of and afraid to [...]

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